#11 Dusty 1993

Editor: So, here we have Sir Anthony Caro's "#11 Dusty" from the Tate. It's rather small and made of steel, but the rough texture gives it this tactile quality. What strikes you about it? Curator: The construction reveals a direct engagement with the materials. Note the industrial process implied by the welded joins; Caro elevates these methods, blurring divisions between art and labor. How does this materiality challenge notions of traditional sculpture? Editor: I guess it is more about the process, the making, than any illusionism. Curator: Precisely. And consider how the "dusty" surface reflects the artist's hand, the labor involved, and perhaps even critiques the polished, mass-produced aesthetic of consumer culture. Does that change how you view it? Editor: Definitely. It feels less like an object and more like a record of its own creation. Curator: Indeed, thinking of the labor reveals much about the intention.